Video Game Review: Battle Bunny
The latest from indie iPhone game app developer, Pocket Monkey Games, sees you assume the role of a murderous rabbit on a rampage against legions of weasels that want nothing more than to see you stuffed.
“Battle Bunny” is a simple side-scroller that takes pride in its pick-up-and-play accessibility, and offers mindless cartoon violence, which is by way a no bad thing. It certainly has a lot going for it – familiar platform gameplay, framed by colourful, well rendered backdrops with cutesy character models, accompanied with arcade-special-effect nods; but it does seems to have left something behind in the hutch.
First and foremost being a lack of narrative. You just start with no explanation as to why this bunny has gone all Rambo and why the onslaughts of weasels are insistent on making a stew out of your bloodied remains. Then, once you realise that you’re a kickarse bunny wearing a beret and packing heat, you really don’t so much mind. It leaves it up to the imagination. My personal story for the bunny is that he’s Machete, but with fur, and the weasels frakked with the wrong rabbit.
It’s also incredibly linear, only offering one level that continuously repeats with ever increasing amounts of weasels coming from both directions, and trip hazards in the form of mines to jump over or they’ll one-shot you – the sort of unapologetic mechanic that seems to have fallen by the casual gaming wayside, but is a very much welcome addition.
Combat is limited to slicing furry-opponents with a sword, or gunning them down at range. However if they do get close to you, they seem to have a good reach for a rodent wielding a rake, so swing early to avoid taking close-quarter damage. It’s a shame there’s no arsenal of ways to dispatch the fluffies. Aside from the coin-collecting upping your highscore, having them as currency to purchase other weapons wouldn’t have gone a miss.
Offering OpenFeint and Game Center tie-ins, as well as leaderboards and achievements, the replay value is definitely there and certainly undeniable.
The linearity is both to the games’ detriment and triumph. It is what it is – a highscore game that’s strangely addictive and draws you in, making you want to see whether you can best your last attempt and also goes someway to sating your furry bloodlust.
Move over Peggle – there’s a new waiting room and train journey game-crack to be had.
“Battle Bunny” is available to download for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad from the App Store for $0.99 and £0.59, in your respective region, and requires iOS 4.1 or later.
Special thanks to Paul for the hookup, and Kris from Pocket Monkey Games for the promo code and giving me the chance to review this game.
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